Luton Town captain Tom Lockyer feeling ‘okay’ after collapsing on pitch in worrying scenes during Championship play-off final
Tom Lockyer is feeling 'okay' after collapsing on the pitch early in the Championship play-off final against Coventry City, according to his father.
The Hatters skipper was taken to hospital after being stretchered off the pitch with 11 minutes on the clock.
The 28-year-old Welshman received treatment on the pitch from medical staff from both clubs, as well as members of the St John's Ambulance, after he tumbled to the turf off the ball.
He was conscious when he then carried off down the tunnel, while his teammates looked on concerned.
The cause of his collapse and substitution remains unclear, but an update from Luton after half-time confirmed he has been taken to hospital for further tests.
"We are able to report that after collapsing on the pitch, Tom Lockyer has been taken to hospital for further tests," read a statement from the club.
"He is responsive and talking to his family, who are with him. We are all with you, Locks."
Of course Luton went on to secure promotion after beating Coventry on penalties at Wembley, something that Lockyer watched from his hospital bed with his family by his side.
Taking to Twitter, Lockyer's father, Steve wrote: Tom’s Dad here. Tom is okay. Very happy but so sad he can’t be there with his team mates. Here is the moment…"
What followed was an image of the Luton skipper celebrating and looking upbeat after his blow.
Most read in Championship
Losing the defender in the early stages was a big blow for Luton - he has found goalscoring form in recent games with three goals in four appearances, including the winner in the Hatters' play-off semi-final victory over Sunderland.
Sam Matterface, Dean Ashton and Ian Holloway were in the commentary box for talkSPORT at Wembley Stadium and described the worrying scenes as the skipper went to ground.
Matterface: “We’ve got a bit of an issue here, Lockyer has gone down on the floor and he needs a bit of help.”
Ashton: “Yeah, this is a worry, he’s gone down with nobody near him at all. You don’t like to see this at all.”
Matterface: “It’s quite concerning. The medical staff are signalling for something rather serious here, they’re asking for a stretcher for the Luton captain. There is some concern about his welcoming here.
Holloway: “Unfortunately that doesn't look good does it, good gracious me.”
Ashton: “You can usually tell with the physios' reaction to any situation, for both physios to turn, I don’t personally know what crossing their arms means, but it’s clearly a signal for other medical staff to come on.
“We talked about the heat when we were down there pitchside before the game, we talked about the emotion of what it does to you in these sorts of games, and we really just hope Lockyer is OK.”
Matterface: “There is concern on the faces of everyone. We’ve seen the footage a few times now and Lockyer stumbles backwards and falls to the ground and he didn’t really put his hands out to protect him, which is always a worry.
“He takes four steps back, stumbles backwards, goes to the ground, he then lifts his head up and then drops back down again.”
Matterface then added: “We can now see that he’s got his head in his hands, which is the best sign we’ve seen all day.
“But it’s a rather startling incident at the start of this Championship play-off final - the biggest game in the lives of many of these players.”
